Self-adjusting posture improvement attachment for brassieres



April 3, 1962 H. K. WILLIAMS 3,027,898 SELF-ADJUSTING POSTURE IMPROVEMENT ATTACHMENT FOR BRASSIERES Filed June 2, 1960 AZTORNEYS. 1

ilnited States hatent O 3,027,898 SELF-ADJUSTING POSTURE IMPRUVEMENT ATTACHMENT FOR BRASSIERES Helene Kravadze Williams, 2132 R St. N.W., Washington, D.C.

Filed June 2, 1960, Ser. No. 33,561 2 Claims. (Cl. 123510) The present invention relates to a combination of shoulder straps on a brassiere that urge and maintain the shoulders in a correct, proper, and desired position, and has particular reference to an improved arrangement of shoulder straps and brassiere straps that attain their effective results by being attached to particular portions of a conventional brassiere serving as a strength or supporting member together with the shoulder straps.

The invention seeks to provide a new arrangement of straps that co-operate to perform a more effective posture improvement device, in which the posture improvement device effects substantially more leverage upon the positioning of the shoulders into a comfortable, graceful, correct and attractive position.

Arrangements have been conceived in the prior art of posture improvement devices in which the posture has been sought to be corrected by providing a garment or other reinforced material having strength supporting panels and sections of garments.

These prior art devices have been found not to provide proper function of a brace, but have been based on the concept of compressing the body of the wearer in order to conform to a proper posture. By these devices, the wearer has conformed to the posture provided by such braces when in their tightened position. These devices further are not attractive nor simple in construction and produce tiring effects, all of which suppress the intended results of posture correction to the wearer.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an attractive and simply constructed posture improvement attachment for a brassiere, and yet achieve all the supporting action that may be performed by any posture improvement apparatus as well as the advantages of the conventional brassiere.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application Serial Number 3,336, filed January 19, 1960, now Patent No. 3,008,468, in the name Helene Kravadze Williams, for Self Adjusting Posture-Corrective Brassiere Attachment.

The principal advantage of the structure of the present invention is that there is provided a shoulder brace together with a bust supporter that utilizes the maximum leverage available in correcting the posture of the shoulders of the wearer by directing the shoulder brace to be pulled through a point as remote as possible out on the shoulder thereof, and yet maintain the shoulder brace from slipping or sliding off of the shoulder cap.

Further advantages in the construction of the invention are that conventional straps may be used and no special cutting or styling of the attachment is required; no special material is necessary in the construction of the attachment; no special cutting or sewing or stitching tools are required; and no special fitting or tailoring is essential.

In the invention there is as an attachment for a brassiere, a pair of posture improvement straps secured to the rear portion of a conventional brassiere or other undergarment, said straps being connected to respective brassiere straps near the shoulders, and an additional pair of straps each connected to the improvement straps for forming a socket for the shoulder cap when the straps are formed to pass over the shoulder caps of the wearer, said improvement straps then passing diagonally down the back of the wearer and around the body thereof to connect in the front thereof so that when the straps are sub- "ice jected to a mild tension, an improved posture of the wearer is achieved.

A complete understanding of my invention may be had from the following description of a particular embodiment of the invention. In the description, references made to the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view illustrating a preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view thereof;

FIG. 3 shows a forward side view thereof; and

FIG. 4 shows a rear side view thereof.

Referring now to the figures, there is shown a conventional brassiere 10 having pockets 12 and 14 and supporting bands 18, 20 that extend from the sides of the pockets and meet or connect at connecting means 22 in any conventional, known means or manner. However it is within the contemplation of the invention that the brassiere may be locked or Zippered together as the converging portion between the pockets 12 and 14, as is also known in the art.

The brassiere 10 is shown as worn by the wearer in the usual or conventional manner.

A pair of substantially thin and narrow posture improvement straps 24, 26 that are made of muslin, or other strength supporting fabric, has one of the respective ends thereof sewn or stitched to a rearward portion of the supporting band 18, 20. The posture improvement straps are then extended upwardly and forwardly to pass over the inner side of the proximate shoulder caps 28, 30 of the wearer. The shoulder cap is the area adjacent the intersection of the laterally projecting part of the body and the vertically extending part of the body where the arm joins the trunk.

An additional or supplemental strap 32, 34 is shown connected to the supporting band 18, 20 at a point forward of the respective posture improvement straps and then is fastened, secured or stitched to the posture improvement strap at a point thereof that is between the shoulder cap and the arm pit, as illustrated. The supplemental straps form a socket 36, 38 for the shoulder cap as it passes along the arm portion of the shoulder cap 28, 30. The posture improvement straps and the supplemental straps are respectively sewed or stitched together, that may be in a diamond configuration, at a point 40, 42 that is substantially midway between the shoulder cap and the arm pit adjacent thereto.

The posture improvement straps may be further connected at points 52, 54 to respective ends of a short portion of a brassiere strap that extends upwardly from the upper portion of the pockets 12, 14. The connections of these straps 42, 44 may be by conventional clips or adjustable fasteners 48, 50 that are secured conventionally to the said upper portions of the pockets, and the distal end of these brassiere straps may be sewn or stitched to the posture improvement straps the intersection 52, 54 of the brassiere strap with the posture improvement straps respectively are slightly forward of the position 56, 58 where the posture improvement straps pass over the inner part of the shoulder caps.

At the shoulder caps 28, 30 the straps 18, 20, together with supplemental straps 32, 34 form a socket or receiving means 36, 38 for retaining the shoulder cap, and it is not possible that the straps would slip off of the shoulder caps 28, 30 in any direction. The supplemental straps terminate in a perpendicularly connected, square-stitched arrangement 66, 68 on the straps 18, 20.

On the back of the wearer, the posture improvement straps respectively cross over each other diagonally to the opposite side of the wearer and then around the waist thereof to a point below the center of the brassiere where they connect by fastening means 62.

The posture improvement straps, the supplemental straps.

pulling the shoulders into the correct posture position with the aid of the sockets 36, 38. It is within the contemplation of the present invention to provide straps that are adjustable and removable, and of substantial narrowness to lend appeal to the posture improvement attachment for the brassiere.

Near the connecting means 62 there may be provided an elastic portion (not shown) that may lend a degree of adjustability in one of the posture improvement straps.

It will thus be apparent that the new apparatus is useful in achieving the greatest amount of correction of the posture to yield a graceful appearance to the wearer of the posture, and concurrently therewith will provide substantially a fashionable and appealing arrangement of With respect to a center point of the body of the wearer, there is a substantially long moment arm provided from the center point to the straps that form the socket for engaging the shoulder caps, so that greater force is applied by tension on the moment arm to effect posture improvement, and the moment arm'is longer than the moment arm found in any-other posture improvement device.

Additional embodiments of the invention in the specification will occur to others and therefore it is intended that the scope of the invention be limited only by the appended claims and not by the embodiments described hereinabove. Accordingly, reference should be made to the following claims in determining the full scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A self adjusting posture improvement attachment for a brassiere comprising a pair of breast pockets adapted for supporting and shaping the breasts of a wearer, a supporting band having upward ends and adapted for gen- .erally extending rearwardly from the breast pockets and adapted for extending around the body of the wearer, coupling means at the ends thereof to secure under tension the supporting band, a pair of posture improvement straps secured near to the upward ends of the supporting band and adapted for extending generally upwardly and forwardly of the proximate shoulder caps of the wearer,a pair of brassiere straps that connect respectively from the upper portion of the breast pockets at one end thereof and at the other end thereof with one of the pair of posture improvement straps, said other end being connected at a point forward of and inward of the shoulder cap, connection means at the ends of the pair of posture improvement straps adapted to interconnect with each other at the front portion of the waist, said pair of posture vimprovement straps adapted for passing from the inner side of the shoulder cap diagonally across the back of the wearer and adapted for continuing around the wearer about the waist thereof to connect with the ends thereof by the connection means at the front portion of the waist, a supplemental pair of straps adapted for respectively connecting a side portion of the supporting straps and the posture improvement straps to each other at a point slightly forward and adjacent of the arm pit and thence adapted for passing over the exterior portion of the shoulder cap and adapted for terminating at a connection with the respective posture improvement strap at a point slightly below the shoulder cap, said posture improvement straps adjacent the shoulder caps and the portion of the supplemental straps adjacent the shoulder caps form a receiving means adapted for said shoulder caps so that the tension that may be exerted upon the straps will tend to hold and maintain the shoulders in an upright manner to effect a correction in the posture of the wearer.

2. A self-adjusting posture improvement attachment for a brassiere comprising a pair of breast pockets adapted for supporting and shaping the breasts of a wearer, a supporting band having upward ends and adapted for generally extending rearwardly from the breast pockets and extending around the body of the wearer, coupling means at the ends thereof to secure under tension the supporting band, a pair of posture improvement straps secured near to the upward ends of the supporting band and adapted for extending generally upwardly and forwardly of the proximate shoulder caps of the wearer, a pair of brassiere straps that connect respectively from the upper portion of the breast pockets at one end thereof and at the other end thereof with one of the pair of posture improvement straps, said other end adapted to being connected at a point forward of and inward of the shoulder cap, connection means at the ends of the posture improvement straps adapted for connecting the ends of the pair of posture improvement straps with each other at the front portion of the Waist, said pair of posture improvement straps adapted for passing from the inner side of the shoulder cap diagonally across the back of the wearer and adapted for continuing around the wearer about the waist thereof to connect with the ends thereof by the connection means at the front portion of the waist, a supplemental pair of straps adapted for respectively connecting a side portion of the supporting band with the posture improvement straps at a point slightly forward of and adapted for being positioned adjacent the arm pit and thence adapted for passing over the exterior portion of the shoulder cap and adapted for terminating at a connection with the respective posture improvement strap at a point adapted to be positioned slightly below the shoulder cap,

said posture improvement straps adjacent the shoulder caps and the portion of the supplemental straps adjacent References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,067,379 Cristofanetti Ian. 12, 1937 2,343,607 Wrigley Mar. 7, 1944 2,711,535 Cooney et a1. June 28, 1955 2,752,601 Gluckin July 3, 1956 

